Vladimir Putin and Russia's Imperial Revival

David E. McNabb, DavidE. McNabb

• Publisher: Routledge
• Year: 2017
• Print ISBN:
  9781498711982
• eBook ISBN:
  9781351537247
• Topic: Politics & International Relations
• Subtopic: National Security
• Index: Politics & International Relations

Discerning the early stages of the rebirth of a new Russian empire from the ashes of the Soviet Union, Vladimir Putin and Russia's Imperial Revival argues that Russia's recent overtly aggressive actions and foreign policy doctrines have signaled a renewal of the Cold War. At the least, Russia's actions represent the potential for renewal. This book explains these developments in a historical context.The book begins by describing Russia's initial policy of rapprochement after the collapse of the Soviet Union and its development into a foreign policy of threatened or actual armed aggression. It identifies today's Russia as a nation determined to re-establish itself as a political and military force. As a prominent figure in the development and continuation of its current foreign policy, Vladimir Putin plays a central role in the topics covered.Previous literature often treats Putin as an individual phenomenon examining his connections to corruption or the secret police, but here David E. McNabb examines him as the latest in a long history of Russian despots who followed similar expansionist policies. He details some of the tactics Putin uses to instill fear and dominate political policies of republics newly independent from Russia. These tactics include the use of energy as a weapon, cyber terrorism, and military support for ethnic Russian separatists in other sovereign nations, most recently exemplified by Russia's annexation of Crimea from Ukraine via armed invasion.In an attempt to demystify Russia's re-emergence as an international political force, Vladimir Putin and Russia's Imperial Revival grounds its analyses in history. It explores as far back as the establishment of the first Russian empire, and regards Putin as a leader determined to establish a fifth imperial incarnation. It provides a nuanced understanding of how Russia arrived at its current position through recent and distant internal and international events.

Index

A

ABM treaty, see Anti-Ballistic Missile treaty

Agents of Russification, 88

Aggressive diplomacy, 11, 181–182

All-volunteer army, transition to, 98

Anarchy, as nature of world politics, 44

Anti-Ballistic Missile (ABM) treaty, 48

Antisocialist action, 76

Armed diplomacy, 5, 15

Atlantic Council, 15, 165

Atlantic-wide security policy, 55

B

Baltic and Nordic states, Russian intimidation in, 159–174

Arctic theater, 163–164

changes in the West’s view of post-Soviet Russia, 172–174

membership of Baltic states in, 173

policy implementation, 173–174

target states, politics of, 172

Finland’s observer status in NATO, 164

future regional security scenarios, 170–172

control of regional security, 170–171

creating client states, 171–172

local ethnic identity, 170

peaceful gaining of economic control, 171

possible scenarios, 170

recreating client state system, 170

territorial expansion, 172

importance of the east Baltic, 167–168

intercepted spy planes, 162

NATO and Baltic/Nordic defense, 162–163

anarchy, 162

reconnaissance plane, 163

Russia’s aggressive military exercises, 163

submarine exercise, 163

NATO fighter jets, 162

Nordic-Baltic-US security cooperation, 161

post-Soviet transition, 168–169

citizenship and language rights, 168

flirt with democracy, 169

real estate-cantered bubble economy, 169

Russia’s ongoing threat, 168

traditions, 169

years of economic trauma, 169

Russian aggression in the Baltic states, 164–167

Atlantic Council report, 165

corruption by scofflaws, 165

emerging new “soft spot,” 165

ethnic Russians, 165

nationalist pride, 165

“Russia’s compatriots,” 165

weak commitment to democratic institutions, 165

underwater testing of coastal defenses, 162

Berlin Wall, removal of, 3

Brezhnev Doctrine, 76–79

changing strategic doctrines, 77–78

Czechoslovakia revolt, 76

preventive diplomacy initiatives, 79

renouncing of, 3

Russia’s European alliances 1970–1989, 79

status quo of borders, 79

C

Catherine the Great

age of, 28–31

wars with Ottoma...

Table of contents

• Cover
• Half Title
• Title Page
• Copyright Page
• Dedication
• Table of Contents
• List of Figures
• List of Maps
• List of Sourcelines
• List of Tables
• List of Boxes
• List of Acronyms
• Preface
• Acknowledgments
• Author
• Section I A Millennium of I Empire Building
• Section II From Uncertainty to Supreme Confidence
• Section III Russia’s Foreign Policy Weapons
• Section IV Russia’s Foreign Policy in Action
• Appendix
• References
• Index